Quadruple Value Offered For Every Pledge Level.

It appears that Tommy Tallarico is trying to make lightning strike again as he's using Kickstarter to fund the fourth full-length album featuring your favorite video game music performed by live orchestras from around the world.

The Video Games Live concert series has existed for over a decade, now, and has yet to show any signs of slowing down. It's been all over the world, seen by millions live, and shown on PBS. Now, three full albums later, the great minds behind Video Games Live need your support to keep this train rolling.

“The music industry has changed a lot over the past 13 years since we started Video Games Live, and no record company was willing to take a chance on risking the money needed to create the project to the high quality and standards that it needed to be. The traditional record companies didn’t believe in the concept and they thought we were crazy… but the outpouring of fan support from around the world was incredible and inspirational. We proved to the world that people DO care about video game music and we believe that lightning can strike twice," said creator Tommy Tallarico.

You can see rewards and details on the Kickstarter page yourself, so I'm not going to sweat the small stuff. But I do happen to know that some of the video games that will be featured on this album include Earthworm Jim, Donkey Kong Country, World of WarCraft: Warlords of Draenor, League of Legends, Cave Story, and more! This looks to be Video Games Live's biggest and best album yet.

What do you think? Will you be supporting this new album? Have you ever been to a Video Games Live concert before? Leave your stories in the comments.

The P-1 Grand Prix comes to a very worthy climax.

I want to clarify one thing before we get into this review: I'm terrible at fighting games, but I'm great at Persona. Ergo, I'm coming at this beast as a person who isn't capable of getting too heavy into the technical side of the fighting game. If that's what you're looking for in a review, I'm afraid I cannot help you. However, if you want to know how this package is for what I imagine is the average Persona fan, then I'm the guy you want to talk to.

Persona 4 Arena Ultimax is the sequel to Persona 4 Arena, where the concept was to bring together cast members of Persona 4 and Persona 3 and bring them into a fighting game scenario. Like it's predecessor, Ultimax manages to deliver in every way on that concept, and does so by running down a checklist of improvements and nailing every single one.

The core gameplay, developed by Arc System Works (BlazBlue, Guilty Gear) is as typical a fighting game as you can get. Each character has unique movesets, there are super bars that you build up by beating on your opponent, and the first person to lose all their stamina loses the match. It's all fairly cut and dry, and anybody who's picked up any fighting game should be able to get the basics. What makes the Persona 4 Arena series unique is that there's a low barrier of entry. Moves are relatively easy to pull off without any super complex button and joystick maneuvering, and even the most novice of player can feel special just by hitting X a bunch of times and watching the auto-combo's fly. This may seem cheap, and on a certain level, it kind of is, but any advanced player that really digs into the meat and potatoes of this game can easily overcome those auto-combos and lay down the law. I know this because I've played online and the X button did nothing to save me.

The big draw to this series for me is the story mode. If you haven't played the original Persona 4 Arena, you're going to feel quite lost as this is a direct sequel in every way. (Fortunately, you can buy the story mode to the original game as DLC to this game and play it first! It's cheaper than buying the whole first game if you don't need to.) Without getting into a whole lot of detail, it's better in both presentation and quality. A strange red fog rolls into the real world, causing all technology to shut down like a mixture of the Midnight Channel and the Dark Hour, leaving our Persona-summoning protagonists befuddled. Their confusion doesn't last long, however, as General Teddie shows up to inform them that they have one hour to reach the mysterious tower that has appeared over Yasogami High to save their captured comrades before the world ends.

Rather than picking every character from a select screen and replaying essentially the same scenarios again and again, you're given a set of story threads that you can bounce between. It's a large cast, so it makes sense that people are split up, but not having to see the same cutscenes and stories play themselves out like they did in the first Arena is a welcome change. There's still the gratuitous amount of event recapping to keep you up-to-date on the scenarios, but even that isn't as egregious a problem as it was in the first game. The events hanging over the giant "To Be Continued!" of the first Arena are neatly tied up in this one, but that isn't to say there aren't a bunch of new mysteries drummed up first. Overall it's as engaging a plot as ever, and more well presented.

There are a few new modes this time around, and most of them are kind of throw-away fighting game modes like Score Attack and training challenges. However, one new feature might be interesting to some; it's called Golden Arena Mode. In this, players pick a character and start going through "dungeons," fighting CPU opponents and actually gaining experience. Experience grants levels, which in turn grant special abilities and stat boosts. Anybody who has played Persona 3 or 4 will immediately recognize the layout and concepts behind this, and it's a pretty interesting way to spend some time playing the game. Ultimately, though, there's no real hooks other than just maxing out your character's stats, so I found that while this mode was interesting, it didn't add a whole lot to the experience. It may have been better tied into the story mode, which itself lacked a great deal of fighting, but then that would have been dragged on for perhaps too long. It's difficult to say, but it is a neat experiment regardless.

The DLC in this game is a bit harsh, especially considering how much of it was day one. On one good hand, anything you bought from the previous game carries over, so if you have the voice packs, alternate color packs, or glasses packs, those all carry over for the existing characters. However, you'll still need to buy new packs to add colors and eyewear for all the new characters. You can also buy the story to the original Persona 4 Arena, as I mentioned earlier, which is kinda handy. But from there there's also a ton of new voiceover DLC, music DLC, and character DLC. The characters are, in my opinion, the most terrible DLC in terms of game content for a number of reasons, namely setting up tournament play potential behind a secondary "paywall." That said, the characters they offer are really good, so I'd have to advise getting them. Just know that's going to be extra money you're going to spend on an already full-priced game. It's a bit much, and I can't help feel like a lot of it is unnecessarily held out to make a few extra bucks. If DLC like this is something that turns you off, I have to think that you'll be soured by the smattering of offers they have in this game. However, if you like DLC to extend your content, then perhaps you'll be bellying up to this all-you-can-download buffet.

In the end, Arc System Works took a checklist of everything that makes a better sequel to a game, and made sure to hit every box. They cleaned up the visuals, they added more music, they added more stages, they added more characters, and they improved on their previous modes while adding new ones. In short, Persona 4 Arena Ultimax is everything I loved about the original, and then some. The gratuitous amount of DLC for a full priced game can be a bit off-putting, especially when characters are involved, but everything else about this game is exactly what it needed to be to make a better sequel.

Pandas plus poker equals party.

If you're anything like me, you like the ideas of good ol' fashioned Texas Hold'em, but wish it had more of a twist. Well, friend, have I got a game that puts more than a few twists on it: Pandánte.

In this game, the players each have a board with one of 10 possible hand combinations on it. They're given a stack of chips, and then everybody is dealt two cards. Everybody ante's one "gold" into the pot, then three more cards are dealt into what is normally known as the flop, but what Pandánte calls The Splash. After that comes a betting round, where players place two gold on their board corresponding to the hand they are claiming to have based on their cards and the splash. This is the crux of the game: you don't actually have to have anything! You just have to convince other people you do. Of course they'll be able to call you out later after more cards have been dealt, but at great financial risk to themselves if you happen to be telling the truth.

One of the other big differences between this and Texas Hold'em is that you can exchange cards during parts of the game known as "Snacks." Here, you can pay a certain amount of gold to trade one of your cards for something in the hopes of getting a better hand, or at least telling a better lie. Mix in the Ability Round into each hand and you can create some really great chaos. One ability lets you add a sixth card to the community cards, while another allows you to fold and take back your last bet if things are getting too heated for you.

An aspect of this game that I really love is that it's innately built to keep players playing the game and less about elimination. One way Sirlin Games does this is by adding a Magic Gold Fairy that will refill you back to 20 gold at the end of a hand where you're below that amount. Not only does that keep players playing the game, but it helps feed more gold into the game to help other players reach the gold cap for victory. Of course, you can play more like classic poker and go for elimination, or even play for real money. It's that kind of flexibility in a game that I really respect.

From a presentation standpoint, I'm absolutely in love with this game. I purchased the deluxe set, so I received the elegantly designed poker chips, the minimalist card set, and the sturdy player boards, all wrapped up in a very posh case. It's a sturdy investment, retailing at $99, but if you have the cash I highly recommend it. Otherwise, Sirlin Games' website offers cheaper versions of the games if you already have your own favorite poker chip set, and even a printer-friendly version of the game, if you really want to play on the cheap.

Pandánte is a game that should appeal to a wide audience. Most folks will appreciate the Texas Hold'em trappings, geeks will love the addition of powers and tricks, and everybody loves pandas.

Smashing your eardrums with awesome.

Smash Bros. for 3DS is out of the bag. Some folks in Japan got their hands on a copy of it early and have been streaming all sorts of features and reveals, and it's nuts. I'm doing my very best to avoid it, but it's all over the internet right now. I just want to hang out until tomorrow during the live stream Nintendo is holding to kind of get an "official" release on any last minute things. Then I think I'll be satisfied without needing to dive into the rest. Maybe. I don't know. We'll see.

In any case, I'm saving that stuff for a write-up tomorrow. Tonight, let's bask in the glory of one more list. Let's talk about the best music they've shown off so far for Smash Bros. on the 3DS.

5. PAC-MAN (Club Mix)

Hirokazu "Hip" Tanaka was the absolute right person to do a version of the PAC-MAN theme song. His trippy sensibilities lend themselves well to this club mix. It's not the Championship Edition DX theme I was hoping for, but it still carries a nice beat all the same.

4. Nintendogs - Bath Time (Vocal Mix)

This peppy, upbeat tune was exactly what I wanted for a Nintendogs themed stage. It captures the whimsical nature and high energy of owning a puppy, with a lounge sort of atmosphere. It's very reminiscent of the works of Fantastic Plastic Machine in some ways, and that's a great thing.

3. Results Screen

This one isn't on the official website, but it is confirmed in the game. If you can't quite place it, this results screen is a callback to the Character Select screen of the N64 version of Smash Bros. However, this version is a big band rendition, and it is simply gorgeous.

2. Animal Crossing: New Leaf - Kapp'ns Song

It starts off a little disjointed, but then goes into a great rendition of Kapp'n's sea shanty from Animal Crossing: New Leaf. As somebody who gets all sentimental for Kapp'n's songs, I'm glad to see this finally get some proper love and look forward to hearing it all the more on his island in Smash.

1. The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks - Full Steam Ahead

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks was not my favorite Zelda game, by far. It did, however, have my favorite overworld theme. The sense of adventure from this tune always energized me to get through an otherwise mediocre game. This rendition is everything I love about the song, only better. The Spirit Tracks themed stage is shaping up to be one of my favorites in the new Smash altogether.

Have you had a chance to check out some of the new music? What are your favorite tracks? Please link to them in the comment's section for other folks to check out and to keep the discussion going!

The first five I'll probably check out

Finally, I was able to put down streams of the Japanese Smash Bros. for 3DS demo long enough to write another article. Here's a look at the 5 new characters I'm most excited to investigate! Please note that I'm only drawing from confirmed characters, so certain leaky types are going to have to wait until later to be praised.

5. Mii Fighters (Brawler, specifically)

In any fighting game that offers it, I always go with the Create-a-Character. No matter how limited it may be, I'm much more interested in creating my own characters than using preset ones. Smash is the exception to this, but I'm still very excited to investigate customizing my Mii to be a Brawler. I also tend to pick characters with an up-close and personal fighting style, so unless he turns out to be a Captain Falcon clone, I'll be enjoying the fisticuffs Mii Fighter has to offer.

4. Mega Man

I didn't grow up playing Mega Man games like a lot of people. I didn't pop in until the X series on SNES, and Legends is my favorite off-shoot. But I still appreciate the Blue Bomber in all his forms, and this one looks to be handcrafted for maximum fan service. He also appears to be a super unique fighter with a lot of tools at his disposal, so I'm interested to check him out.

3. Wii Fit Trainer

Before, she was just going to be a fun character that came out of nowhere, but when I learned she's also a charge character I became much more interested. For those who don't know, she uses the Deep Breathing technique to charge the power of her attacks. It goes in combination with her Sun Salutation charge-up shot, making for a dangerous combination. I enjoyed playing Lucas in Project M, who had a similar mechanic, and I'm hoping that the Wii Fit Trainer works in a similar manner. I look forward to finding out soon!

2. Robin the Tactician

Ever since I played Fire Emblem: Awakening, I've wanted The Tactician, or Robin, as a Smash character. It turns out that Mr. Sakurai and I were on the same wavelength with his design, too, because Robin does everything I imagined he would. He throws out spells and fights with the Levin Sword, creating a mix-up that makes him wholly unique from other sword fighters. I'm hoping he has a "Hood up" alternate appearance, but I somehow doubt it at this point. Oh well!

1. Villager

I've been an Animal Crossing fan for years now, and I've always wanted the Villager to make an appearance. In my head, he utilized his tools a bit more to do his work, like recovering with the fishing rod as a whip/grapple mechanic, but Mr. Sakurai's realization of him is even better. The way he moves, the weapons he uses, and his Final Smash are all brilliant. I look forward to weeding out my opponents one at a time in the near future.

What Newcomers are you excited to play as? Anybody in particular catch your eye? Feel free to drop a comment and keep the discussion going!